


Empty Promises.

by TomatoBird



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Angst, Implied Relationships, Implied/Referenced Character Death, also just so we are clear the way I wrote summer and qrow is totally platonic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-03
Updated: 2020-01-03
Packaged: 2021-02-27 10:01:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22085326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TomatoBird/pseuds/TomatoBird
Summary: Team STRQ is approaching their graduation, however, it has worsened some unfortunate habits for Qrow.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 24





	Empty Promises.

"Qrow, you seriously having another drink?"complained Raven as she entered into the room, staring down at her brother, who was sprawled on the couch, and he sighed loudly. "Yeah, what's it to ya?"He grumbled, his voice slurring somewhat but still recognizable. Raven tsked loudly as she sat across from him and leaning back on the chair. Her red eyes staring above at the ceiling 

"I don't understand why you are taking this so bad. We only joined Beacon to understand how to kill huntsman. You knew this day was.coming." Raven's voice although crude and blunt, Qrow couldn't ignore that small twinge of sadness. It likely was barely noticeable to anyone else, but being her twin brother. Qrow quickly saw right through her. 

"I just don't understand _why_ we have to go back. I think this time at Beacon has been for the better. And I can tell, it's the same you, huh?"Qrow said that last part in a playful tone, and Raven immediately knew what he was referring to. A small blush crept onto her face and she huffed loudly. 

"Taiyang and I aren't...It's not…"

She tried to explain, attempting to keep up her facade, but it was decaying slightly. All these years, bonding with her team had taken a toll on her hard exterior. Qrow let out a low rumbling laugh as he sat forward, his eyes cloudy with intoxicated swirling inside them. Raven stared at him; she knew he had been worsening in the weeks leading up to their graduation. And that wasn't the only thing fuelling his alcoholic descent. 

As she was going to speak, muffled voices could be heard approaching their room, and that was the end of their conversation. For now, at least.

"I'm just saying Tai! I think our team attack could use some work! Maybe if we.." Summer's chipper voice sang out, but her entire body froze when she saw the scene presented to her in their dormitory.

"Qrow, have you been drinking again?"She said, her voice ringing with a hint of sadness as she stared down her teammate, who just waved her off with a smile.

"Maybeee.." 

A sharp sigh escaped Summer as she shook her head, and Taiyang approached from behind "Are you serious? That's his fifth time this week being like this. Raven, why didn't you stop him?" Raven shot a dagger-like glare in Taiyang's direction as she growled out in response "Hey! I'm not his babysitter! I shouldn't be held response for him!"

And Summer herself inserted herself into the conversation."Yeah, she's right, Tai. This isn't her fault."Before Taiyang could say anything in response, there a murmur of annoyance from the other side of the room, which caught everyone's attention. 

"Why are you talking like that as if I'm not in the room and can hear everything you're saying?" Qrow's voice was dry; he wasn't even looking over at his team. The three of them all shared glimpses at the other. A thick layer of tension was dumped on every person there. Summer spoke up finally after what felt like forever. 

"Qrow, I'm sorry. We were just…"Summer started but she couldnt find the words to finish her sentence, she just stopped and gave him a sad look. Qrow's head snapped up, and he became suddenly aware of everyone's stare in his direction. With a groan, he pulled himself up and wobbled slightly. 

"Geez, I can tell when I'm not wanted. I'm going!" He grunted as he stumbled to the.door, and a groan came from Taiyang "We didn't say that Qrow, we are just worried. Can we talk?" Tai's voice was shaky; he was very concerned about the state of Qrow's visible mental spiral. 

Qrow stopped for a moment. He seemed to consider what Tai had told him. But after that brief pause, the man shook his head and opened the door"I don't need pity. I'll be elsewhere." With the sound of a soft slam, Summer sat back onto her bed and hummed sadly. 

"He's gotten considerably worse the last few weeks. At first, I didn't pay too much attention when he had an occasional drink. But this?" 

Taiyang nodded in agreement as he leaned against the wall, and his gaze fell to the floor. After a moment of silence, he turned to Raven."Hey, you know him better than anyone else. Do you know what could be on his mind?"Raven pondered on that for a moment. She sat as the other two watched her every movement. 

"I can tell by the way he's acting, it not just one big thing. It's...several small things." 

The last part of the sentence was spoken with a solemn tone. Raven didn't dare meet the eyes of her teammates. 

"I...Don't know what those other problems could be."

_A lie._

"But I can tell for certain what one of them could be."

_Not a lie._

Tai and Summer both sat there, waiting for Raven to continue what she had to say. 

"...Remember that one training mission at the start of the month?"

* * *

Qrow sat on the roof of Beacon, staring up at the endless sky that held sparkling stars. He reached down, feeling the cold glass of his liquor bottle.As he held it to mouth, the chilled liquid was gulped down and contributed to his already numb insides and mind. As he finished off the drink, he let out a ragged sigh, and the bottle landed with an echoing **_clang._ **

"Hey, birdbrain."

Came a familiar voice of Tai, which for a moment brought with it a fleeting sense of comfort. That was short-lived, however, as his body tensed up with anxiety.The sound of several footsteps approaching Qrow caused him to instinctively blink away the tears that had started to well up. The rest of his team sat nearby, all eyes on the shattered moon that loomed over them. 

"...Figured we'd find you out here. This is where you always go when you're upset." 

Summer said as she leaned on Qrow's shoulder, and the man scoffed under his breath."Didn't think I was that predictable." Qrow snickerwd which earned a short chortle from Raven as she gave him a look which then was followed by a devious smile creeping onto her face

"The time you lost the singles round in the Vytal Festival?" 

Qrow let out a small groan as he remembered that day, a slight red blush running across his face. He recalled that it was something that a good portion of his year didn't let him forget for months "Oh, man, yeah. I got knocked out in about 3 minutes because I had misjudged the girl's semblance!" Qrow said, a glimmer of joy in those red eyes of his. 

Summer giggled loudly with a snort as she pointed at Qrow. Excitement bubbled on the surface level of her body, and she clapped her hands together "That's right! You thought she could only jump really high but turned out she could manipulate gravity! She turned you into a rag doll!" she cried out which caused Qrow to howl out in laughter. Slapping his knee the initial feeling of embarrassment was soon replaced with amusement.

"Or the time you asked out that kid from Atlas academy, and he publicly rejected you?" Taiyang brought up, which caused Qrow to wince, but he chuckled at the memory and scratching the back of his neck bashfully. He remembered that beautiful face; he rarely the type of guy to become smitten, but that hit him like a freight train "Oh, man, and then I _had_ to go up against that kid in the doubles round? Raven almost killed me because of how off my game I was."

And Raven let out a puff of annoyance as she raised her eyebrow towards her younger brother"Of course! I had to pick your sorry butt off the floor when he went straight for you." Both Qrow and Tai met each other's eyes, then proceeding to burst into a small fit of laughter "I can't blame you there, Qrow. The man was built like a God. I could barely believe he was in our year!"Tai shouted, and Raven couldn't help but crack a smile at that comment. As the moment died down, Summer finally brought up what needed to be said.

"...And that one training mission..?"

A cold breeze passing by all of them, and each member fell silent. Qrow knew what she was alluding to, dread crept up his mind and was reminded of one of their worst training trips"Summer...I…" Qrow began, but she quickly hushed him gently as she stared over at Qrow, whose face was a mixture of shame and hurt "You can't blame yourself for what happened. We all turned out okay." 

"I alerted a whole pack of Beowolf by accidentally firing my weapon. Because of my semblance, we could've been killed. There were hundreds of…" Qrow spoke with such a quiet tone that it was difficult for everyone to catch what he had said. Tai patted his back, and a warm beam was directed at him.

"And we made it out. Qrow, by now, we are well used to your semblance. Every time we go out now, we're prepared for the worst-case scenario!" Tai explained, but his eyes widened as those words slipped past his mouth and Qrow could be seen visibly digging his nails into his skin.

"I..I didn't mean it that way...I?"Tai sputtered, and Raven rolled her eyes at the fumbling mess that was her teammate. Summer then stepped in, tried to defuse the situation."What Tai is trying to say, we have gotten well adjusted to what could happen. When was the last time bad luck caused us problems? Before that mission, that is."

Qrow thought about what Summer had just said to him; nothing recently was coming to mind. The last time he could remember something going completely wrong was...

"2nd year." 

And Summer snapped her fingers as she yelled out, "Aha!" as she stared at him with a toothy grin"Yeah! 2nd year! We've started being more self-aware on outings. Even I find myself being more cautious on my own, which has saved me many times. If anything, Qrow, you've helped me become a better huntress."

Qrow's whole body loosened up when he heard that. He couldn't believe what he was being told, and it sounded so fake. His breath hitched as he struggled to take them to heart "Ever since we were kids, you've had a bad habit of self-deprecation. Pair that up with drinking, and you've got a very nasty combo. You need to stop; it's not healthy." As usual, Raven spoke bluntly and honestly. But it wasn't to be cruel. Qrow knew she only said these things because this was just the Raven way of caring.

"This team wouldn't be the same without you, Qrow. I've seen...others split up after graduation. But I don't want that to happen to us…" Summer spoke in a low voice, trembling halfway through. A small quick glance between siblings was made. Neither said anything, but both knew at that moment what had been decided.

"As always, Summer, you're the best of all of us."

Qrow joked as he pulled her in for a playful noogie, and she complained loudly as she tried to push Qrow off, and he eventually let go. But a small tender smile was shared afterward. 

"I think we're always gonna be together, eh guys?" 

"I had truly wished you were right, Petals…You always were..."

The wintry feeling drifted in the air, and the coldness forced a shiver up his spine. With a sad look, Qrow stared at the grey tombstone. He hadn't seen Tai in weeks and Raven…was well being Raven. "I'm sorry.."Was all Qrow could say as he began to walk away from Summer's grave. Qrow wanted to be sure that he had made it a reasonable distance from it before he reached into his pocket and pulled out the metal flask. It's surface gleaming in the moonlight. 

Even though Summer was gone, he still couldn't bring himself to drink in front of her. As Qrow raised it and taking a big swig from it, he let out a long exhale. 

Life always found a way of showcasing it's ugly misfortune, huh?


End file.
